Knicks Officially Complete Kemba Walker Draft-Night Trade

The Knicks have officially traded Kemba Walker and the draft rights to Jalen Duren to the Pistons.

The New York Knicks and Detroit Pistons officially completed the draft-night trade. Kemba Walker and the draft rights to Jalen Duren, who was the No. 13 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, was traded in exchange for a future first-round pick. 

The expectations were high for what Walker could achieve with the Knicks when he was signed to a two-year, $17.9 million contract last summer. After a season with the Boston Celtics with averages of 19.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.9 assists, his production faced a significant reduction in New York. 

Walker received the lowest minutes per game average (25.6) of his NBA career and was removed from the rotation for the first time early in the season. It quickly became clear that he was not the type of point guard that coach Tom Thibodeau wanted to have on this Knicks team. He averaged career-low figures across the board with 11.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. 

The premise of this trade for the Knicks was to incentivize the Pistons to take on Walker's contract in an effort to clear the necessary cap space to sign Jalen Brunson and Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency. New York still has an agreement in place for a trade that sends Alec Burks and Nerlens Noel to Detroit. The transaction for the separate trade has yet to be completed. 

There was reporting on draft night that instead of two separate trades, the Knicks instead agreed to a three-team trade involving the Charlotte Hornets. 

It was initially reported that Walker is expected to reach a buyout agreement with the Pistons, but placing his near $9.2 million salary on waivers is another option. The market is saturated with point guard talent with Collin Sexton and Dennis Schroder still unsigned. If Walker is willing to sign for the veteran's minimum, he could have more options for potential landing spots at his disposal. 

The Knicks were initially expected to make the Brunson signing official on Wednesday, but have yet to do so. There's speculation about the possibility of his acquisition being turned into a sign-and-trade agreement with the Dallas Mavericks.